Glimpses
by Tia Ordona 23
Summary: One hundred peeks at the love of Kafei and Anju. MM, 100 word drabbles, Kafei x Anju.
1. Beginnings

01. Beginnings

Her eyes fill with tears as the small velvet box opens, revealing a large stone, a wedding band, what she had seen in her dreams but was too scared to believe that her fantasies would become a reality. He is bowed on one knee, a position so vulnerable after going in this far, and his amber eyes are wide and pleading, as if he is begging of her to answer.

She doesn't have to be told twice as she gives in to her happiness and throws her arms around his neck, eager for the new beginning of her pristine bliss.


	2. Middles

02. Middles

When Kafei manages to reach the meat of his story, he stutters and eventually breaks off, lapsing into a thoughtful silence.

What is there to tell? He was separated from Anju. He was lost, encased in the body of a scared child. He hid, ashamed, in the natural, flowing confines of the laundry pool, where none could find or harm him. And she didn't know. She thought he left her. Her heart was split into two, and he couldn't bring himself to pick up the pieces.

He was a coward. And he always loathed the middle of his story.


	3. Ends

03. Ends

The feeling of the ground's tremble makes her stomach lurch. The symphony of crashing buildings, toppling down over her head, makes her shiver. The smells of burning wood and smoke fill her nose, the bitter, acrid scent stinging her eyes. The world is ending, slowly and painfully, and she grips on to the warm hand, encasing it in hers. She embraces the only comfort she has left in her last moment.

A soft sigh, almost content, escapes his lips. He is not frightened. He is with her, his joy. "I love you, Anju," he whispers.

And that is her end.


	4. Insides

04. Insides

_I'm a child._

In her arms, he looks like a child. He is an illusion of a scared little boy, clutching his mother as the final moments fan out behind them.

But his insides show regrets, regrets of a single mistake that delicately blossomed into full-blown disaster. His insides show the passion, the feelings of tender love between the two of them. His insides show the frozen excitement for the wedding…_their_ wedding. She is his wife-to-be. But as a husband, he already failed.

In his last hour he is thankful for her vision of his insides.


	5. Outsides

05. Outsides

Wearing a mask to hide his shameful appearance, he steps into the afternoon downpour.

The sky rumbles a menacing growl in greeting, sending a fork of lightning toward him. A rat scampers toward him, its ugly nose twitching, in search of a tasty morsel. He can't help but pity the poor thing, stuck in the rain.

With a failed mission on its back, it runs into town, hoping to find a kind soul to feed an ugly creature.

If only he, too, weren't judged by his outside. Then maybe...he would be with her, rather than hiding from her.


	6. Hours

06. Hours

Two hours. It's been two hours since he was to come home. Yet she remains alone, sitting on the bed, her nightgown clinging to her figure, hanging above her mid-thigh, a deep shade of amber. It's his favorite gown. And he's not even here to see it.

Three hours. He's still not here. She panics, afraid that he was attacked.

Four hours. She sighs, the hurt pulsing through her veins when she comes to terms.

_He left me._

Her heart crushed to pieces, she lowers her head, and the tears begin to spill from her eyes.


	7. Days

07. Days

Could it really be true?

He raises his head to the clouded heavens, and sure enough, the monster in the sky is glaring back at him. He gulps and looks away…the thing looks like it has a face. A _face!_

But was it really going to fall in three days?

He slowly takes the pendant from his breast pocket and rubs his thumb across the smooth surface. The blue gem is deep and promising and reassuring, and the gold embellishment shines. His finger leaves a small print across the unmarred surface.

Three days…to see his fiancée one last time.


	8. Weeks

08. Weeks

It had been two weeks. Two weeks since he went into hiding. Two weeks today, and he is _sick _of it.

He crawls on to the small step stool set up next to the window-trying not to think about how short and young he had become-and looks out. But instead of the open air he yearns for daily, he sees the inside of a strange shop. Despite the odd wares inside, his eyes train themselves to the door.

He watches, hoping to see his love…and explain his betrayal.

But after two weeks in hiding, she wouldn't listen.


	9. Months

09. Months

She jumps into his arms, giggling as he spins her round and round. After a blissfully long moment, he reluctantly sets her down and observes her, his eyes combing her body.

She's dressed flawlessly for the engagement party. Her hair is pulled off her face and curls in bouncy waves. Her dress is form fitting, showing off her dangerous curves and thin waistline, ruffling at the edges and cutting off at the thigh. The bright turquoise makes her look more beautiful that ever before.

She pecks his lips. "Just one more month and I'm yours."

He nods. "One month."


	10. Years

10. Years

He puts an arm around his wife's slender waste, pulling her close, feeling the warmth radiating from her body. She responds by sidling closer to him. The bed creaks slightly, and the darkness is suffocating, but he feels comforted by her presence in the black of night.

"Anju?" He props himself up on his elbow. "Do you know what day it is?"

He can't see her through the thick shadows of midnight, but her voice answers plainly. "It's our one year anniversary!"

He smiles, kissing her softly, and lays back down. "And here's to many more years."


End file.
